Delete robots.txt, allowing search engines to crawl older versions of docs

[josh-wong]

Description

This PR removes the robots.txt file, which previously restricted search engines from indexing older documentation versions while allowing the latest version. This change means there are no longer any explicit instructions for web crawlers regarding which documentation pages to index or exclude.

Note

We've decided to allow search engines to crawl all versions of the site again so that we can experiment with using Google Search on the docs site. Allowing for multiple versions by using Google Search on the docs site would be more user-friendly since not all users will be on the latest version.

So that unsupported versions of docs aren't included, we should try to start working on moving those unsupported versions of docs to a dedicated archive site.

Related issues and/or PRs

• PR where we added this robot.txt file: Add robots.txt to restrict crawling of version-specific docs #754

Changes made

• Deleted the robots.txt file.

Checklist

The following is a best-effort checklist. If any items in this checklist are not applicable to this PR or are dependent on other, unmerged PRs, please still mark the checkboxes after you have read and understood each item.

• I have updated the side navigation as necessary.
• I have commented my code, particularly in hard-to-understand areas.
• I have updated the documentation to reflect the changes.
• Any remaining open issues linked to this PR are documented and up-to-date (Jira, GitHub, etc.).
• My changes generate no new warnings.
• Any dependent changes in other PRs have been merged and published.

Additional notes (optional)

N/A

[gemini-code-assist]

Summary of Changes

Hello @josh-wong, I'm Gemini Code Assist¹! I'm currently reviewing this pull request and will post my feedback shortly. In the meantime, here's a summary to help you and other reviewers quickly get up to speed!

This pull request reverses a previous decision to restrict search engine indexing of older documentation versions by deleting the robots.txt file. The primary purpose of this change is to enable comprehensive search capabilities across all documentation versions, facilitating an experiment with Google Search on the docs site. This aims to improve the user experience for individuals who may not always be on the latest documentation version, with a future plan to archive unsupported versions.

Highlights

• robots.txt Removal: The robots.txt file has been deleted, removing all previous restrictions on search engine crawling.
• Enhanced Searchability: This change allows search engines to index all versions of the documentation, not just the latest, to support experimentation with Google Search on the docs site.
• Improved User Experience: The goal is to provide a more user-friendly experience by enabling users to find relevant documentation regardless of the version they are currently using.
• Future Archiving Plan: A future initiative is planned to move unsupported documentation versions to a dedicated archive site to manage content effectively.

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[gemini-code-assist]

Code Review

This pull request removes the robots.txt file to allow search engines to index all versions of the documentation. While this achieves the immediate goal, it introduces a significant risk of negative SEO impact due to duplicate content and can lead to user confusion when they land on outdated documentation via search engines. My review includes a critical recommendation to implement canonical URLs to mitigate these issues, which is a standard best practice for versioned documentation.

[feeblefakie]

LGTM! Thank you!

[jnmt]

LGTM, thank you!